Buddhist Stupa in Boudhanath

Travel Day 1001 – Kathmandu, NEPAL

After my somewhat interesting visit at the Pashupatinath Temple, it was about time to rather visit a site that I actually cared for, Boudhanath…

Buddha’s Eyes on Boudhanath Stupa

Boudhanath was next to Swayambhunath the most important Buddhist site in Nepal and it too was an enlisted UNESCO World Heritage Site. Boudhanath was actually the biggest Buddhist Stupa and it was set even on three raised platforms, giving the golden spire and elevation well above all surrounding buildings and exposing to views from far away…

While approaching Boudhanath, which had nowadays grown into the outskirts of Kathmandu, the spire became a great landmark for orientation, equally as a church tower would have been back home in Europe. Even all the houses were oriented around the big central stupa in a way that they left a circular square around it, for all the pilgrims walking their clockwise rounds while spinning the hundreds of prayer wheels along the way…

Boudhanath Stupa by Kathmandu

Of course, the UNESCO enlisted stupa of Boudhanath was definitely an impressive site, but it unfortunately did impress rather by its mere size than by its quality or level of detail. This big stupa with the somewhat boxy looking spire was in my eyes missing all the delicacies that Swayambhunath had to offer since its proportions and detailed approach seemed unparalleled and somewhat effortless in a direct comparison…

Even the fact that the Boudhanath stupa was located on top of three raised platforms gave the impression that the otherwise not so high stupa was made to appear bigger than it actually was. Also the urban location, while being surrounded by modern buildings, made for a less authentic and less atmospheric feel than Swayambhunath had to offer with its remote location on the hilltop, being surrounded only by equally as historic structures as well…

Tibetan Prayer Flags in Boudhanath

But on the other hand the main draw-card for Boudhanath was that it was actually more approachable for the Buddhist community. There were not only many monasteries around, but also a lot of Tibetan refugees seemed to live in the area and some of them were walking their rounds with the monks and everyone else who had shown up. I too was walking my rounds while spinning the seemingly endless row of prayer wheels…

Eventually I retired in one of the many rooftop cafes, to enjoy the views over Boudhanath and the big stupa. Afterwards I obviously had to sneak into one of the many Tibetan restaurants for some delicious Thukpa and at this point I knew that I had to definitely come back here. Two years ago I had stayed in one of the monasteries and right now it seemed like a very good idea to do that again… : )

Find all Boudhanath Photos here.